


Degree of Insanity

by firewolfsg



Series: Marvel: X-Men / Vertigo: Sandman Crossover [2]
Category: Vertigo (Comics), X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1997-07-01
Updated: 1997-07-01
Packaged: 2017-11-23 02:52:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/617282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firewolfsg/pseuds/firewolfsg
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gambit has a visitor, and pandemonium erupts at the X-Mansion. If he wants to stay sane, Remy has to be very careful with this member of the Endless.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"REMY!!!"

Gambit winced at the volume of the bellow. He still did not get along with Joseph, though he had to admit that it wasn't the man's fault. So what, if Magneto had appeared at the mansion as an amnesiac? It wasn't as if he had lost his memory intentionally.

So what, if the X-men seemed to accept Joseph more than they'd ever accept him? Drinking had been a mistake. Almost dying of alcohol poisoning a disaster. Nothing changed, and there were better things to do than to brood over it.

"Gambit! Where are you?!"

Remy glanced down at the man from his high vantage point in the tree. He contemplated staying silent, and leaving Joseph to wander around the woods looking for him. He really had no desire to speak to the man.

The ache had mostly faded, but sometimes … when he saw Rogue and Joseph together … it was difficult for him not to reach for either a cigarette, or a beer. No, he wasn't being fair. Rogue had made it clear to him that she was willing to be his friend. But she wasn't ready for intimacy of any sort, with him, or with Joseph.

"Remy, please we need you at the mansion!"

Remy looked up from his book again. He could not recall having *ever* heard that timbre of panic in the man's voice before.

"REMY! Your Harley's in the garage, you've got to be here. I don't know where else to look, Remy!"

This was too weird. Remy sighed inwardly as he marked his place with a bookmark and closed the book.

"Joseph! Stop y' cryin, Gambit up here. Y' could ‘ave used de communicator." He pushed aside the leaves to look down at the man from his vantage point.

"Everything's shot to hell, Remy! We need you at the mansion!"

Before Gambit could hop down from the tree, Joseph caught him in a magnetic bubble and started to fly him in the direction of the mansion.

"Wha- Joseph, put Gambit down!" Three charged cards appeared in his hand.

"No time! Gambit, please put our differences aside. We have an intruder, she's taken down Bishop, Scott and Logan. No one knows how to handle her, she's looking for you."

"Oh, so y' sacrifice Gambit f' de X-Men?"

"That's not what I meant."

"Sound like dat t' m-"

Gambit's voice trailed off as they came into sight of the mansion.

"Get off! GET THEM OFF ME! Ow! Get them Off! Arragh!" Scott was on the ground, frantically brushing himself with his hands as Jean held him. Jean was crying in fear and panic as she tried desperately to calm her husband.

Wolverine and Bishop were sitting near by with a glazed expression on their face. From all appearances, they were amusing themselves playing with the colorful little fishes that swam around them. The other X-Men were standing petrified on the front porch, as the source of their fear sat on the ground making little colored frogs.

Remy cursed under his breath, "Set Gambit down now, homme. Gambit take care o' dis. Y' stay back, an' y' keep y' mouth shut, y' hear. Let Gambit do de talkin."

@};-'- @};-'-

_"Hmph, is he the one we're looking for?"_ The little black and gray dog asked his mistress, as he turned to watch Gambit running towards them.

 _"WhO? Oh yEs, we dID coMe lOOkiNg foR Re- er rEa - reM- loBoO?"_ The little girl ran her hand through her blonde hair, and twisted the colored streaks around her fingers. Her eyes, one blue and one green focused on the dog beside her.

_"i ForGoTT, tHey weRe so NasTy to Me?"_

"Ahh, petite chere. Y' grace dis mansion wit' y' presence." Gambit bowed extravagantly as he took her hand gently and kissed it, "What can Gambit do f' y'?"

Her face lit up as she giggled, _"I lIkE yoU. YoU're Not naStY tO mE. thAT's pRoBabLY WHy mY brOTher LikEs YoU."_

Remy flashed a smile at her.

_"Okay, okay, move it along, Romeo. Move it along."_

"Pardonz moi, but y' are?"

_"Barnabas, I'm taking care of her."_

"Den perhaps you an' de petite chere c'n enlighten Gambit, neh?" Gambit got down on one knee before them.

_"wEll my BrOther, tHE oNe wiTH ThE gARdeN, He sAiD i sHOuld coME to YOu tO FrEe mY BRotHEr. I wAS vISitINg hIm, loOKed EveRy WHeRe, evEN In tHe old lADy'S cAVe But hE wAsN't tHeRE. My bRoTHer sAId I ShoULD LOok fOR yOu to gEt hIM OUt."_

Gambit blinked at her for a moment, as he tried to sort though what she just said.

_"Hey, LeBeau. Don't blow a fuse. Dream was caught, and Destiny said you have a part in helping us release him."_ Barnabas offered.

"Ahhh, give Gambit a moment t' get his tools petite and he'll go wit' y'." Gambit glanced at his stricken teammates before he continued, "Petite chere? C'n y' do somethin' f' Gambit before we go?"

_"aHhaAA?"_

"C'n y' let them out of y'r realm? Gambit know dey were rude t' y' but dey are really good people. An' it make Gambit sad t' see dem like dis."

_"OKay, bUT oNLy cAusE yoU'Ve bEEn vErY nICe to mE."_

"Always chere. Gambit always nice t' such a beautiful petite chere."

[Jeannie, y' keep everybody away from de petite.] Gambit threw the thought towards Phoenix as strongly as he could, [Remy will take her away.]

_"I'll watch her."_ Barnabas promised as he glance at him, _"But you better hurry. This was the best I could do, until one of your people decided that looking for you was a better option."_

"Oui."

@};-'- @};-'-

Gambit leaned against a post and retched as the dog placed a comforting paw on his knee.

 _"Sweetness,"_ Barnabas sighed at the little girl, _"I think I've mentioned it before. But it really would be infinitely more comfortable in your presence, if you would treat gravity as a law instead of as a suggested option."_

_"Oh I reMEMBer thAT, I REmeMBer mY cleVER liTTle DOggIe sAYinG tHaT."_ She clapped her hands and laughed, _"i ReMemBEr, Let'S ALl JuMp Up ANd dOWN, aNd DAnce arOUnD aNd AROunD …"_

Gambit got his stomach back under control and wiped his mouth before he turned to look at the leader of the rescue squad.

"Are we - are we dere yet, petite?" He asked in a shaky voice, "Please, Gambit don't know ‘ow many more o' dese side trips he c'n take."

_"OH BUt wE aRe thERe. LoOK!"_

Gambit's jaw dropped as he stared at the mansion beyond the fence.

"Y' brought Gambit t' de Big Easy?"

_"YoU pROmISeD."_

"Of course, petite." He quickly reassured her, "Y' jus surprised Gambit, dat's all. Dis not ‘xactly de safest place f' Gambit t' be. We best be gettin in and out o' dis place fast. Gambit not ‘de best friend o' de Assassins Guild, neh?"

_"Are you sure you can handle this?"_ Barnabas asked, _"I mean, you're just a master thief, and the captors need powerful spells to hold one of them."_

"Gambit been studying. When he first did a favor f' de petite's brother, he studied some magic t' learn how t' break wards and stuff."

_"That's quite a commitment."_

"Y' never know when it be useful, neh?"

_"BUt oNcE yOU wALk The paTH of MagIC, yOu cAN'T stEp oFF."_

"Remy know petite, but Gambit be an X-men and life not be any more weird dan it is now." He grinned at her, "Now, y' jus' take care o' Barnabas, and let Gambit go in alone t' find y' brother, neh?"

_"BUT i wAnt to coME."_

"Y' make Gambit worried, petite. He don' wan' y' t' get hurt, or let de bad people catch y' if Gambit make a mistake."

_"Humph, but you're not a powerful sorcerer. What if they try and throw a spell at you?"_

"Dan Gambit hav' t' move fast, neh? Listen petite, dis be best if Remy go in alone. Y' c'n wait f' Gambit at y' brother's castle, neh? If Remy pull it through, dat be where y' brother will go. Oui?"

_"OUi."_

_"Don't you need blue prints of the place?"_

"Gambit know dis house, Barnabas." Remy sighed, "Dis be de house of my wife."


	2. Chapter 2

[Remy LeBeau? Y' must be stark raving mad, homme!] Gambit moved quietly from shadow to shadow after he quietly scaled the fence. [Must be the company y' keep, neh?]

[Merde, wha' y' doin', Gambit? Belle'll as soon as kill y' if she know y'r here.]

[Dan again, y' be in worse shape if y' say "no" t' de petite.]

Getting in past the guards and the security of the house wasn't difficult. He had done so numerous times when he was growing up. And very little had changed in the security arrangement since his last visit.

[De petite had best be right, dat her brother is here.]

A pang of nostalgia touched him as he picked the lock on the window to Belle's room. It was empty. As the leader of the Assassins' guild, she stayed in the Master bedroom.

His wife was a very different woman now, but Remy could still second guess her. He quietly moved a panel aside on the headboard to reveal a little safe.

[Ah chere, y' put dis in recently did y'? Guess y' hide more dan y'r diary in y' secret shelf now.]

In less than half a minute, he had the safe open. Remy grinned as he looked in to find the fire opal and a little bag. As he pocketed the two items, Gambit gazed wistfully at the diary which lay in the safe as well.

[Non, y'r life is y'r own now, me amour. Remy has no place here anymore.]

Gambit's spatial awareness was working over time as he moved through the house. The basement was the best bet for him to find the prisoner.

The magical wards, and alarms, started to appear at the stairs leading down to the lower levels. At any moment, Gambit had expected himself to trip a magical alarm, and bring the assassins down upon him. He did not achieve the rank of Master Thief for nothing, but magical alarms were another matter.

[It jus be another kind o' security system, neh.] He tried to reassure himself, as he sprinkled the special powder he carried for this particular pinch in front of him. The charm which guarded the door turned from green to blue. Once passed, he rearmed the charm.

The room beyond was the final obstacle. Gambit extended his spatial awareness beyond the door.

[Three guards. And … yes … he is there.]

Gambit fingered the items in his pocket, a fire opal, and a small bag of what felt like sand. He had to get these objects of power to the prisoner within. Quietly, he bent to pick the lock. It was no challenge.

So engrossed was he, that he did not notice the shimmer of the air behind him until it was too late.

"Y' mad t' come int' de heart o' my home, husband."

Gambit put his back against the wall and held his bo staff at the ready. Four charged cards appeared in his other hand.

"Belle?"

"Y' as good as ever, thief. But de last door c'n only be opened wit' a key. Anyt'ing else sets off an alarm. A quick port down and de trap be sprung."

Belle's hands glowed in a nimbus of energy, "My assassins are comin' homme. Y' not leaving here alive."

"Y' make a mistake wit' de ancient ones, Belle."

"Y' make a mistake comin'!"

Remy dodged the blast as he threw his cards. The time for silence was long over.

The first set of cards unbalanced Belle, and the approaching assassins. The second set took out the door and the guards within, who had approached to check on the commotion.

"We got t' get us gone, mon ami." Gambit dived into the room and quickly dragged his bo staff across the circle which surrounded the glass cage. The kinetic charge he sent through the staff, scratched through the stone and effectively broke the circle of binding.

"Non!"

This time, Gambit wasn't able to dodge the energy blast. It threw him across the room to land against the furthest wall.

"Wit' out Candra, dis be our power now." Belle stalked through the ruined door, "Dis be our key t' immortality!"

"Dis is not sometin' y' c'n manipulate, Belle. Y' also got de wrong one," Remy reached into his pocket to take out the fire opal, "Dis is no god!"

Remy charged the fire opal and threw it at the glass cage.

"Nooooo!"

An explosion of energy and light engulfed the room. Remy tried his best to shield his photosensitive eyes, but it still took sometime for him to shake off the sparks which marred his vision. He felt the little bag being slipped out of his pocket, as a vortex of wind and energy swirled around the room.

When his vision finally cleared, Remy saw the restored dream lord step out of the shattered cage, and over the broken circle to approach the stunned assassins. The pale man blew on the mound of sand in his hand, sending all but the leader of the assassins into the realms of sleep.

"Non!" Gambit scrambled to his feet, to stand between Belle and the Dream Lord.

_"Remy, if you would stand aside."_

"Non, y' are free. Let dat be enough."

_"You would ask me to allow this woman to go unpunished? She has endangered the dreaming to ask for gifts that are neither mankind's to receive, nor mine to give."_ The pale lord regarded him, _"And that is the least of her sins. I know it was my eldest sister she wished to capture. And all living things would have to consider themselves fortunate, that she did not succeed."_

Gambit felt the prick of a knife against his throat.

"Y' are a fool, LeBeau." Belle hissed as she held the blade against him, "And y'. I'd suggest y' get back in y' cage, less y' want t' see ‘is blood spilled."

The green stars flashed dangerously.

_"You still desire to protect this woman, Remy?"_

"Oui. Jus' go. Dis be family business now."

"I will cut ‘im. I mean it." The knife sliced through the fabric of Gambit's collar drawing a thin line of blood.

They stood there, for a moment.

_"I owe Remy a debt of gratitude, Belle donna. I cannot let you kill him before I repay it."_

Belle dropped the knife with a startled cry, as it suddenly turned into a snake. Gambit took this chance to twist around so that he face Belle. His hands held her wrists so that she couldn't reach for anymore of her weapons.

_"Why do you seek to protect this woman, Remy? Surely your marriage is considered annulled."_

"We were in love since we were pups."

"I c'n't remember!"

"An' I c'n never forget."

Belle was silenced by this confession.

"Dream Lord, I ask y' t' give her y'r forgiveness. And I will count y'r debt paid."

The pale lord was silent for a moment.

_"In times past, I would not let this effrontery go unpunished."_

"What did y' do t' de one who killed y'r earlier aspect?"

_"I let her go."_

"Remy asking y' t' give his wife de same forgiveness."

_"Very well, Remy." _The dream Lord sighed as he reached out to touch Gambit's shoulder, _"Come then, it is time we take our leave."___

__The two figures faded away, leaving Belle alone with her unconscious assassins._ _

__"Remy?"_ _


	3. Chapter 3

"So y' be wanting me t' look f' y' black pearl now, mon ami?"

_"If you have the time, it can wait. You are a complex man, Remy LeBeau."_

"Pah, Remy not de deepest y' ever met."

_"I would ask then, how you knew that destroying the opal would return my powers to me? You are astute, Gambit. Though some may consider you a fool, because you squandered yourself of a favor."_

Gambit looked down at his feet as he walked, "Belle still be my wife. And a part of Gambit still loves her."

_"As you say. My sister, however, would also wish to offer you a gift for helping me."_

"No need, mon ami. I do dis f' a friend."

_"I believe it would be wiser if you consider her offer, Remy. She might decide on her own to give you something."_

Gambit swallowed hard, "Remy, t'ink about it."

@};-'- @};-'-

A raven sat on Gambit's shoulder as it showed him the path towards the waking world.

"Kaarrk, clever request with Delirium, Cajun. Now she's one kid you don't want to mess with, with regards to gifts."

"Dat de only t'ing Gambit can t'ink of, dat he wan' t' ask o' de petite."

"You did okay by the kid, too." the raven told him, "he's a bit shaken by the close call, but he'll be all right."

"At least this time he asked for help, Matthew."

They turned towards the source of the voice to see a pale young woman approaching them. Gambit flinched involuntarily when he saw her.

"Sorry, chere."

"That's okay, Remy." She smiled at him pleasantly, "I can't imagine anyone wanting to meet a person who calls him an idiot to his face."

"Gambit, deserved it, chere. Least y' call it t' his face, an' not t' Remy's back."

"I'm glad to see you in brighter spirits." The woman smiled as she fell into step with him. "I came by to thank you for helping my brother. And … to ask, why did you let her off, Remy? She would have easily sent you to me."

"I don' fear y' sunless realm, chere. But y' brother, he c'n be far more terrible dan y'."

She looked at him expectantly. He obligingly continued with a sigh.

"In his heart, Gambit still cares f' his wife, chere. He still willin' t' give his life f' her."

They walked a bit more in silence before she spoke again.

"Remy? What would you have asked for this time, if you didn't ask my brother to forgive your wife?"

Remy looked at her suspiciously from the corner of his eye.

"Don't look at me like that. I haven't seen my brother yet, so he didn't put me up to this. After hearing what you asked for the last time, I'm just curious."

"Y' don' go telling him, neh?" Gambit folded his arms and sighed, "Remy would have asked f' a dream through de gates o' bone."

"Kaaarr, A true dream? What of?" Matthew asked as he hopped off Gambit's shoulder to land on the rock beside the portal.

"Maybe f' his wife, maybe f' Rogue. Or maybe Gambit decide he won' be selfish, an' ask f' somet'ing f' de X-Men. I leave y' t' guess wha' it might be."

She smiled as he took her hand and kissed it in parting, "Take care of yourself Remy. My brother doesn't have many friends as it is."

"Pardonz moi chere, but Gambit hope dat our date in Samara won' come f' several decades." He grinned at her before he stepped through the portal.

"Same here Remy, be safe. Please don't have me see you too soon."

@};-'- @};-'-

As promised, Gambit walked through the portal and found himself in the living room of the mansion. The X-men turned to look at his entrance in shock.

"Remy! Thank the Goddess you're safe."

"Where ‘ave yer been, sugah?"

"Where did you come from, Remy? Did you slip pass the security systems again?"

"Who was that girl, Gumbo?"

"What kind of power did she have? She wasn't a mutant."

"Are you hurt, Remy? Your armor's charred … you have a cut on your throat!"

"Perhaps you should grace the infirmary with your presence, Remy. Let me check if you have any injuries."

"Gambit … What's going on?"

Gambit studied the open faced curiosity on the X-men. His own face was screwed up in thought as he tried to put words to his recent adventures. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again and shook his head, his poker face slipped into place.

"Y' not believe, Gambit."

Scott caught him by the shoulder before he could turn away.

"That's *not* an acceptable explanation, Gambit. Try us."

Remy could barely hold back his laughter at the man's expression. Curiosity was just eating away at him.

"De quick version is dat de petite's brother was a prisoner, an' de homme was held in my wife's house. Gambit got him out, and he came home."

"Who was the girl?"

"De Lady Delirium."

"Huh?"

"Let Gambit see if he c'n get dis right. She be an …. anthropomorphic … personification o' … a consciousness. De petite chere is, Delirium."

The X-Men blinked at him.

"Er … Remy, what did I find you reading this afternoon?"

"'Reading'? We should be asking what he's been drinking, Joseph."

"I *don't* smell any alcohol on yer, Gumbo."

"Remy, perhaps a trip to the infirmary really is in order. If you are having delusional episodes -"

Remy pulled out of Scott's grip with a sigh. "Gambit said, no one would believe him."

"Remy? Sugah, if ya' havin' problems-"

"I … am … not … crazy." Gambit snorted, he threw a grin at Bishop before he turned away from them, "Let's jus say dat if Gambit does become de Witness, dis time Bishop got no need t' worry dat he go mad, neh?"

With that he disappeared up the stairs with a chuckle.

"Remy! You can't leave it like that?!"

"Gumbo! The kid had me and Bish, on our butt ends and drooling!"

"She had me believing I was covered with … with bugs."

"Remy, it wasn't telepathy. What did she do to them?"

"REMY!!!"

**End**

:-) 


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